AHMEDABAD: For the first time a new standard for operations for BRTS has been introduced by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP). From the next year onwards, the city's BRTS will be rated against 70 other similar mass transit networks across the globe, said ITDP officials.
The ITDP has released the BRT Standard, Version 1.0 - a new scoring system based on internationally recognized best practice in bus rapid transit (BRT) system design.
The BRT Standard awards points for characteristics such as off-board fare collection, frequency of service, level boarding, safe and comfortable station design, passenger comfort and access and good integration with cycling and walking. It deducts points for low speeds, overcrowding, poor maintenance of buses or stations, lack of right-of-way enforcement and too long or too short distances between stations.
Similar to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building ratings, the BRT Standard designates gold, silver, and bronze rankings. "While over 70 cities have created some form of BRT, many people are simply not aware of their true potential, since there is a tremendous variation in the quality of those systems," says Walter Hook, Chief Executive Officer of ITDP.
"It became clear to us that a standard was needed to recognize the leaders in BRT, and to help those planning new systems," he added.
Ahmedabad's Janmarg BRT system is one among the global BRT systems that soon will be evaluated by the BRT Standard Committee. "Enacting a universal standard for BRT systems will make a huge difference to world-class systems such as Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd (AJL) by giving an official recognition celebrating AJL's achievements. If AJL earns a gold, silver, or bronze ranking, it will identify Ahmedabad as a world leader in BRT," says Hook.
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